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Metapopulation dynamics and total biomass: Understanding the effects of diffusion in complex networks

Alfonso Ruiz-Herrera

Theoretical Population Biology, 2018, vol. 121, issue C, 1-11

Abstract: In this study, I explored the impact of constructing a new dispersal route between two different patches in a metapopulation. My results indicated that its success/failure on the population abundance greatly depends on the patches directly involved and negligibly on the network topology. Specifically, constructing a dispersal route is highly recommended if it connects a source to a source that is close to becoming a sink or a sink that is close to becoming a source. This biological property is the basis for understanding the influence of the network topology on the population abundance. According to some thresholds discussed in this manuscript, I identified when a given route has a positive or negative effect on the population size. Consequently, as a simple rule of thumb, managers should look for metapopulations that have the maximum (resp. minimum) number paths with a positive (resp. negative) effect on the population abundance. As emphasized, the biological results of this paper do not depend on the model formulation.

Keywords: Dispersal; Source–sink dynamics; Topology; Management; Population abundance; Connectivity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:thpobi:v:121:y:2018:i:c:p:1-11

DOI: 10.1016/j.tpb.2018.03.002

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